More South American teams could qualify for the 2026 World Cup on Tuesday.
Second-place Ecuador can do it by winning in Peru. Fourth-place Brazil or third-place Paraguay could secure a spot at next year's global tournament with a win in Sao Paulo as long as Venezuela loses at Uruguay.

As Cristiano Ronaldo lifted the Nations League trophy and his Portugal teammates celebrated behind him, Spain's players watched in clear disappointment.
There was no major letdown after the penalty shootout defeat in Sunday's final in Munich, though. There were no calls for a coaching change. There was no blaming of players who underperformed.

Two defeats and last place in a mini-tournament it expected to win have dealt Germany a cold dose of reality ahead of the 2026 World Cup.
The Nations League final four in Germany was supposed to show Julian Nagelsmann's team can count itself among Europe's best, but a 2-1 loss to Portugal in Munich followed by a 2-0 defeat to France in Stuttgart instead revealed a gulf in class.

Cristiano Ronaldo says he's almost certain he will not be playing at the Club World Cup, dealing a blow to FIFA president Gianni Infantino's hopes of having one of soccer's biggest attractions at the tournament.
The Portugal captain confirmed Saturday that he received "quite a few" offers from participating clubs to play for them at the tournament starting June 14, but had decided against accepting any of them.

Italy was hit by a new injury blow when forward Moise Kean withdrew from the squad on Thursday for World Cup qualifiers against Norway and Moldova.
Italy defenders Alessandro Buongiorno and Mattia Gabbia had already left the training camp with injuries this week. The latter was replaced by Daniele Rugani.

That No. 2 seed Coco Gauff reached Thursday's French Open semifinals should surprise no one. Her 361st-ranked opponent for a berth in the title match? That's a whole other story.
Gauff made it to the final four at Roland-Garros for the third time, getting past No. 7 Madison Keys 6-7 (6), 6-4, 6-1 on Wednesday in a quarterfinal between two Americans who both have won a major title.

Cristiano Ronaldo has led Portugal to its first win over Germany in 25 years.
The 40-year-old Ronaldo captained the team and scored his 137th international goal as Portugal came from behind to beat Germany 2-1 in Munich in their Nations League semifinal on Wednesday.

Italy has another issue in defense before facing Erling Haaland and Norway on Friday in a World Cup qualifier.
AC Milan center back Matteo Gabbia was ruled out with a right calf issue on Wednesday and Daniele Rugani was called up as a replacement.

In April, Chinese President Xi Jinping visited a company that makes humanoid robots. There he floated an idea to fix the country's woeful men's football team.
"Can we have robots join the team?" Xi was quoted as saying on the website of Zhiyuan Robotics.

Brazil's new coach Carlo Ancelotti is getting a little help from his old friend Casemiro as he prepares for his debut in South American World Cup qualifying at Ecuador. Meanwhile star Lionel Messi is expected to play Thursday for Argentina at Chile after a seven-month absence.
Veteran midfielder Casemiro, who has had success with the Italian coach at Real Madrid, is likely to be a starter in a match Thursday that could ease the pressure on Brazil, currently in fourth position in the standings. A home win could also put Ecuador close to its berth in the World Cup.
